Media CommunicationsPublic Relations Specialists

Media CommunicationsPublic Relations Specialists

ABOUT US

Whirlwind Communications was set up by journalist, filmmaker and communications specialist Gail Downey to help organisations stand out in a crowded digital market place. Gail works with multinationals, corporate organisations, charities and government in the UK and abroad promoting their work and ensuring they are media ready and where necessary, media savvy if faced with a negative press.

Her team runs publicity campaigns through digital content from press releases to blogs and thought leadership articles, advertorials, case studies, E-books and award winning video production. We know what makes a story and will be honest enough to tell you if you don’t have one.

You may want to raise the profile of your organisation and want an additional external resource. You may want to test the waters of a new product or run through some message testing in the run up to a crucial report or public inquiry. We can help your team with our expert media training carried out by experienced journalists who understand how the media works now.

Gail provides crisis communication expertise in workshops or as an additional external resource. Her experience as a TV and radio reporter for BBC and ITV news means she knows what to expect. Couple this with Gail’s international media and corporate work from Rio de Janeiro to the USA and you have a global outlook in a media landscape where a story about your organisation has wide reaching consequences.

Do take a look at the services we offer.

Give us a call t: 01788 877247 m: 07976 819913

e:
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PR SUPPORT

PR is no longer just about press releases. PR is about both the internal and external communication you have with customers and staff. Your public relations should include E-books, advertorials, thought leadership articles and blogs as well as your social media. We create content that rises above the noise of the crowd. We make the complex simple. We get you noticed. See our full list of services.See More

MEDIA TRAINING

Do you know what to do when a journalist calls? Hiding behind the filing cabinet is not an option. We help you make the most of media opportunities from radio and TV through to online magazines and the national media. Our courses build confidence, prepare you for the best and the worst and provide you with a toolkit for dealing with journalists in the good times and the bad.See More

CRISIS COMMUNICATIONS

So you have a crisis or emergency planning strategy for your organisation but do you know what to do when the journalists knock on your door? Dealing with a crisis is tough enough. Dealing with the media when you are under fire will test your patience and your reputation. Understand how journalists work in a crisis and what you need to do to protect your reputation long after the crisis has passed.See More

PR Support

We work with you to draw up a PR and Communications strategy which fits the needs
of your organisation and understand the best way to reach your audience.

You want a blog, you promised yourself you would write a blog but you just don’t have the time. An interesting and informative blog B2B or B2C which makes a good read is what people are looking for. The problem is it isn’t your forte. You have an organisation to run. We can do it for you incorporating your keywords and themes to make it readable and promotional. Bad blogs will give the reader indigestion.
A good blog will give the reader food for thought.

If you are in a group on LinkedIn then why not join in the conversation by having a Pulse piece? There may be tips you want to share with your peers. Stories of how you overcame issues or discovered a new way of working. These all make good reading. They also drive people to your website. Add a link to a landing page which is relevant to the piece. Don’t be afraid of comments on the article or of commenting on other people’s posts too.

E-books are another way of sharing information where you know the reader needs it in easily digestible but readable chunks. A well thought out and suitably targeted E=book will increase your chances of it being downloaded. What information would help you? Promote the book with press releases, blogs and on social media. Offer it as downloadable chapters to keep it in your readers’ mind.

There is a lot more to writing and distributing press releases than meets the eye. It has a much bigger hurdle to jump than any other kind of communication. Why? Because it has to grab the attention of the journalist first. We work on both sides of the fence so know the difference between a press release likely to get used and one that won’t. Let us write and distribute them for you.

A third party recommendation via a case study is always good news. It can be used on your website and as part of a publicity campaign. We interview your clients and ask them to tell us what is good about working with you. We produce a well-written piece of copy which you both can use to show how strong business relationships can succeed. A win/win for client and supplier.

How many times have you had a newsletter land in your inbox and felt like sighing? Something else you have to read. More content to overload your inbox. We produce readable, interesting and informative newsletter your audience – internal or external – will want to read. As an alternative why not have a video newsletter – after all who doesn’t like watching films?

Eye-catching paid for adverts will get attention but an advertorial will do much more than that. A well-written and informative advertorial will grab the attention of the reader and give you the chance to explain what you do. If it is complex don’t worry. We make the complex simple, readable and memorable.

Rather than the written word, video or images may be what works best for your organisation. However make sure that video isn’t simply about the pictures. Use those images to tell the story of your company, use them to accompany a PR campaign, use them with social media to get you noticed. Use our sister company Whirlwind Productions to bring your stories to life

MEDIA TRAINING

Doing media interviews can feel terrifying but it needn’t be that way. To help you understand what makes a journalist tick and how you can feel more confident in an interview situation our media training courses give you the chance to meet industry insiders.

We will give you highly practical training so you can put our knowledge into practise and see how you can get your point across. No-one says it is going to be easy but with simple steps you and your team can feel more in control of the interview.

We look after delegates who are new to the media and those of you who want to fine tune your skills with advanced refresher courses. We speak to you before the course to find out what you want to get out of it. We provide constructive feedback on the day and post-course with copies of your interviews.

All our courses are bespoke and we work across the UK and abroad. You can choose from studios near to your headquarters or we can bring our team to you. If you find yourself approached for a last minute interview we can run through some training over the phone or on Skype or Facetime. Ask us about a course to suit you. We provide training days to include TV, radio, print and online.

Doing media interviews can be tough enough without the added pressure of having to worry about what to wear, where to look, how to stand and the whole image issue. Unfortunately women are judged more harshly in the media by both the press and the audience.

You want to come across as a professional person remembered for what you said and not for what you wear. You want to feel comfortable and reassured that you are seen as a credible spokesperson. You can do your job, you can run a business, you can lead a team and you are clear about the points you want to get across in a media interview.

This course puts you through our media training with interviews in print/online, radio and TV but with the added insight of what works for women in the media and what doesn't. We help you find out what works best for you and your professional image.

You know your subject inside out. It may be a scientific paper or a medical finding. You may have a campaign you want to publicise. You are confident of what you want to say but unsure how to get it across on TV, radio or in a media interview.

On our Being the Expert workshops, we help you understand what makes a strong and credible media interviewee. You will learn how to perform on TV in particular – and it is part performance. You will get help pre-interview with your key message, how to make the complex simple and be remembered by the audience you want to reach.

Our workshops help GPs, scientists and academics among others. We show you what works and what doesn’t. And most importantly of all, give you the expertise to make it look simple. Who doesn’t want that?

Sometimes when delegates come to do media training they find one of the most difficult things is being challenged on their message. Our trainers are all journalists and so won't simply take your well-honed key messages at face value.

Our default position is "prove it." So if you want to tell the audience you are the best employer in town, a journalist will want you to back that up. So how do you do that? We will put you through your paces when it comes to your key messages, just as you would be tested in the press.

We work with you whether it is an internal or external communication. We will also help you think through the messages, understand what works best with the audience and how to get them across in a way which is memorable and has proof points to back it up. Want to try?

CRISiS Communications

Preparation, preparation, preparation is the key to a strong crisis communications strategy and dealing with a hostile media.

Dealing with the media is the last thing you want to do when your organisation is facing a crisis. Unfortunately journalists won’t wait until it is over before coming at you. Our Crisis Communications workshops will give you what you need to know. They’re designed to put you through your paces and that is no bad thing.

The workshops are fast moving and interactive. Run by real journalists, not trainers, they show you what happens once the media get wind of a crisis. We test you and your PR. Does it work when facing a hostile press? What can you say when people are posting bad news about you on social media?

Working with your PR team or Crisis Leader we come up with scenarios to test you in the real world. You will be given the tools you need should the worse happen. You’ll also understand why the media behave the way they do and what you can do about it. It is also a great team building exercise.

Being prepared for the worse is the key to a strong crisis communications strategy. It is vital for your staff and for your public image. Remember the journalists won’t wait until you are ready to give a statement. News happens fast and news happens now. A crisis communications strategy must include how you deal with the media.

We help organisations think through their crisis strategies through the eyes of a hostile press. You will get help in understanding the best time to give interviews and the best time not to face the media. We help you draw up a robust strategy showing you where the leaks can occur and how and why social media plays such a big role in today’s news.

Our strategies have helped organisations get their message across regardless of what is going on around them in the crisis. We know your staff as well as your customers will want reassurance too and that is why internal communication is as important as external in your strategy.

When a crisis breaks you will want all hands on deck. That’s why we provide a robust team to help you deal with the media while you deal with the crisis. The media won’t stop and wait until it is all over before coming to your doorstep. Let us handle them while you get on with your job.

Our team works alongside in house and external PR agencies to give you the support you need when dealing with the press. We are all working journalists and understand how the media operates in a crisis – we’ve covered more than a few ourselves!

You will get team players with your interest at heart who can produce strong media statements and if necessary prepare you for interviews whether it is print, online, radio or TV. We’ll work with your crisis team to help them do their job while the media does all it can to get you to follow their agenda!

Once the dust has settled and the crisis is over you will want it to be business as usual. Unfortunately that is a tough message to convey when you have been splashed all over the media. You will want to review your crisis communications strategy and work on rebuilding your profile. How do you do that?

Your reputation is everything. A crisis can damage that. But you can turn things around with a robust strategy which addresses the issues that caused the crisis. How we help is to work with you to develop a powerful communications strategy to rebuild your reputation and manage it in the future.

You will want to review your key messages and put together a plan for the foreseeable future. This should include internal communications as well as external. Your customers are important but so are your staff too. You will need their help if you are to move from the crisis and rebuild trust and confidence in your organisation.